After celebrating her tenth birthday, the two little ones advanced to fifth grade.
Learning became more difficult and there was more material to study, but for struggling student Zhao, it made no difference.
The only impact might have been an increase in homework, which affected her sleep at night!
"Shen Zhaozhao!"
Half-asleep, Shen Zhaozhao was nudged awake and looked up at her deskmate Sang Youyou with a pair of bewildered eyes.
Sang Youyou squeezed her eyes toward the direction of the teacher's desk, signaling her to look that way.
However, the two failed to communicate with their glances, Shen Zhaozhao didn't catch her hint, reached out, cupped the other's face, and leaned in to ask, "Youyou, is your face cramping?"
Abandoning her attempts at eye contact, Sang Youyou resorted to mouthing words: "Look, up, there."
"What are you saying?" Sadly, they were completely out of sync.
"She said, 'look up there.'" Only when an angry voice finally rose, suppressed with rage.
